Entertainment

Karen Finley started out performing feminist monologues full of vitriol and fury in the punk clubs of the Bay Area in the late 70s. By the 80s, she’d moved to New York where she was a regular at legendary performance venues like Danceteria. And then in 1990, she became a household name as part of the NEA FOUR—a group of four performance artists whose National Endowment for the Arts funding was revoked because conservative Senator Jesse Helms had a hissy fit about decency. The case...

Ask Dr. RuthDirected by Ryan WhiteOut May 3
Dr. Ruth Westheimer, known lovingly as America’s sex therapist, is almost 91. And it’s possible that there has never been a better time to celebrate her incredible life than right now, when we need some hope (and better sex education) more than ever. The documentary Ask Dr. Ruth oscillates between painful recollections of the educator’s childhood growing up in Europe during the Holocaust, clips from her various television shows and guest appearances, and Westheimer’s reflections now....

When comic books first came about, they were supposed to be stories about heroes saving the day, and by today’s standards many comics from the golden period would be considered sexist, no matter how strong the central female character was.
Thankfully, in 2019, this has been changing. More women and marginalized voices are writing comics, and more comics are starting to address larger, societal issues. One such comic is Cecil Castellucci’s newest work with DC Comics, the six-issue mini series Female Furies.
Set on the hell planet Apokolips,...

As we settle firmly into spring, it’s the perfect time to sit outside with a great new book (maybe by Rebecca Solnit, or Ayesha Harruna Attah?) or a peppy, catchy-as-hell song on repeat. Here are some of our recommendations this week.
MOVIES/TV
Surviving R. Kelly: The Impact
Hosted by Soledad O’Brien, Lifetime will be setting aside two hours this Saturday for reactions to January’s Surviving R. Kelly. As per the media release, this special will investigate “the impact the documentary has had on our culture globally, how it...

The new Netflix documentary Knock Down the House, set to be released on May 1st, details the stories of four different women who decide to run for Congress in the 2018 midterm elections. The film follows Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Paula Jean Swearengin, Cori Bush, and Amy Vilela in their first ever political campaigns. Watching the film is equal parts thrilling, heartwarming, and frustrating. Running a grassroots campaign is hard work, especially considering the fact that all the women featured are running against deeply entrenched incumbents in...

Halima Aden is the first model wearing a hijab and burkini to appear in Sports Illustrated. Aden was born and raised in a refugee camp in Kenya until the age of 7 when she moved to the United States. Her “rookie” SI Swimsuit spread was shot at Watamu Beach in Kenya by photographer Yu Tsai. The issue will be coming out on May 8th.
In 2016, 19-year-old Halima gained popularity when she was a semi-finalist and the first woman to wear a hijab in the Miss...

SOLANGEWhen I Get Home(Saint Records/Columbia) Solange has always been the more avant-garde of the Knowles sisters, and her excellent new album, When I Get Home, finds her pushing her own musical boundaries even further than she did on 2016’s A Seat at the Table. When I Get Home is a meandering, complexly layered love letter to Solange’s hometown of Houston, featuring several spoken interludes and a lengthy roster of guests including Gucci Mane, Panda Bear, Playboi Carti, and The-Dream, plus a sample of—this is...

Disney Heiress Abigail Disney, the granddaughter of co-founder Roy Disney and grand-niece of Walt Disney, has been a long time critic of the mega-salaries of CEOs and the government giving the top 1% tax breaks. Recently on Twitter, Ms. Disney criticized current Disney CEO Bob Iger and other Disney executives for receiving bonuses and stock awards worth around $62 million last year. The amount lower tier executives and constituents received is unknown, but is estimated to be potentially millions of dollars more.
Last year Iger’s salary...